Over the past two years, digital adoption has exponentially grown to a level experts thought would be years away. Since the onset of the Covid-19 crisis, technology has played an important role in mitigating and supporting economic and social activities during what we now know was the most disruptive health crisis in modern times. Amid fear of the various and due to countrywide lockdowns, everything that was outside of essential activities was moved online. Wherever possible, everything that could be done with apps was done using these digital technologies. Government services, health, education, and business all had to find ways to manage their systems online.

As the pandemic continued we got a clearer picture of the role that technology played in the pandemic. During this period the world’s biggest software companies grew significantly because the demand for technological services increased. The pandemic has given the world a glimpse of the digital age and pushed us years ahead in the predicted timeline of digitalization.

Remote Working

One of the biggest cases where technology was crucial in the pandemic was with remote working. Employers around the world had to tell employees not to come to the offices and instead would continue to work remotely. Online conferencing tools like Zoom and Google Meet became standard for most teams and more importantly allowed for business to go on as usual. Team management platforms allowed for organizations to efficiently manage employees.

Technology allowed for most non-manual workers to seamlessly move online and allow essential workers to carry out their jobs while everyone else stayed home safe in their homes and reduced the risk of spreading the virus in the workplace.

Education

Most schools closed amid the fear of learners being in close contact with their peers and teachers would spread the virus. At the peak of the pandemic over 1.2 billion learners were affected by school closures globally. Most schools at all levels moved to online classes which allowed for students to continue their education. Even after some in-person classes were reinstated students continued distance learning continues for many students.

Technology allowed many students to carry on their education but also showed new ways of offering education that will shape the future of education. In some studies, online learning even proved to increase retention over normal in-person classes.

Business

Many industries and businesses turned to technology to help them survive the pandemic. Businesses that already had digital systems in place thrived and those that did not quickly react to the situation and serve their customers. During a few months of the pandemic businesses digitalised by 3 to 4 years and investment in digitalisation increased.

In an effort to adapt, businesses started to give customers digital offerings for their products. Financial industries for example turning to online tools to allow their customers to apply for loans online. Instead of forfeiting business or and shutting down some services amid safety concerns of being and lockdowns, online purchases increased which resulted in the growth in e-commerce platforms. Smaller businesses could offer these services as well because technological solutions such as digital payment solutions made this a more seamless transition for business owner

Social interactions

During the pandemic, most people were at home, confined to beds and couches. Social life as people knew came to a complete stop. Social distancing meant exactly people couldn’t go about their normal social routines, events and gathers where they usually fostered community. Fortunately, people turned to technology to enable communication with their loved ones and stay entertained. Social media apps in particular played a big role to connect calls and making communities online. For example, social media usage in the USA increased by seven minutes a day.

Technology in the post-pandemic era

Before the pandemic, the world was progressively digitalising with some industries and parts of the globe more ahead in the process than others. The changes we were witnessing prior to Covid-19 exponentially sped up and technology usage worldwide surged in two short years. It is yet unclear when the globe will stabilize after the pandemic. However, experts say that the changes witnessed in technological advancements are the new normal.

Is remote work the future?

We already know that the way people work has changed. As we enter a time when companies are deciding the way forward for their workers we most workers show that they do indeed prefer a hybrid style of work and flexible remote jobs. Although remote working seems to be the preferred way of working now before the pandemic employers were hesitant to initiate such programs for their employees because of uncertainties that surrounded them.

Emerging technologies

Emerging technologies that we saw being used during the pandemic such as machine learning used facial recognition software which helped authorities in some places to enforce Covid-19 regulations. Experts forecast that these technologies will become more common around the world although there are debates around their use. Experts also say that it is going to increase in the near future and see growth in immersive technologies such as virtual reality.

The digital opportunity

Digitalisation has long stood as an opportunity for growth, reduced inequalities and transparency. This opportunity is now upon us in ways that were not anticipated because of lockdowns that called people to rely on technologies to survive. Businesses that did not have digital systems before the pandemic rushed to create the processes and as a result mitigated some of the challenges presented by the pandemic. Governments around the world have also long invested in strengthening data protection efforts to make the transition onto digital platforms smoother and safer for citizens.

The pandemic aided in showing that technology can have a real impact on making people’s lives easier and streamlining processes for greater efficiency in business. People now are more willing and likely to seek out the convenience of smart technologies that were made available during the pandemic. What this means is that in the future the demand for software development and new technologies will continue to grow as the world becomes more technology-driven.

The role of technology in the covid19 and postcovid19 era